Mexico City

[chuck461]

I am working in Mexico City for the next 5 weeks. I'll have some days off to explore. Can anyone recommend places to see? Are there any galleries dedicated to photography? A place dedicated to Manuel Alvarez Bravo? Museums? I am mostly interested in B&W straight photography but any suggestions are appreciated.

I will also be looking for places to photograph. Parks, interesting neighborhoods...I will probably get around by Metro, so if you know the nearby stations, that would be helpful. I think "Auditorio" is my nearest Metro stop.

Thanks
Chuck

[John Kasaian]

Hire a local guide. Really.

[Daniel Stone]

1stly:
I'd be wary of going solo out on the town, but that might just be me. Having someone with you might help you keep "a-head" ;). IDK if the recent cartel-related violence has stretched down to Mexico City, but I know its not a place that most people(even there) venture out on the street late at night alone. I've been there a few times on church-related trips a few years back, and it was an excellent time! I have plans to go back soon myself as well, just not work or church-related :).

Have a fun time! There's LOTS to see, the ruins near the main square are great to see, if you can get out to the pyramids, they're a longish drive, but well worth it!

John's recommendation of getting a guide might be a good one, especially if you're not fluent in spanish. The AAA can be helpful if you're a member, they might have a list of some sort of recommended "personal guides" in Mexico City.

best of luck!

-Dan

[Vick Vickery]

Its been many years since I was in Mexico City, but two restaurants I'll never forget are "The Flamingo Room" and "Sep's" (hope I got those right)...the Flamingos were in a pool in the center of the former and kept trying to steal food off your plate, and the steaks at Sep's were to die for...each pan broiled and served in a cast iron skillet still sizzling! I'm getting hungry just thinking about it! After you go, let me know if either of those is still around...might even make me want to go again!

[msk2193]

Some great things to see while in DF are:
Chapultepec's Castle
Anthropological Museum (first class museum!)
The Polanco shopping area (and while there have lunch or dinner at Rincon Argentino - my favorite restuarant in DF)
Zocalo, notice how people move with the sun's shadow of the flag in the square!
The streets surrounding the Zocalo and it's historical governmental and religious buidlings.
Then, yes the pyramides of Teotihuacan and the remains of the Large Temple of the Tenochtitlan.
Nightlife at the Zona Rosa and try the Angus Butcher House for the food, or was it the food?

Mexico City is a spectacular city where things can go wrong very quickly; like in any large city in a high-crime country. Pickpocketing and hold-ups are your main concern.

As John recommended; talk to the hotel concierge and have them hire a car and driver for a day or two. Usually won't cost you too much and usually Gringos with locals aren't harassed too much!

Above all -- disfruta!

[Wayne Lambert]

What they said.
The upside, it's a fascinating city. On the downside, serious photography (especially view camera) can be difficult due to crowds and the possibility of theft.
Some notes:
Lots of colonial buildings around the Zocolo, especially north of the Zocolo, but sidewalks can be very crowded.
The late 19th/early 20th-century neighborhood around Frida Kahlo's house (Londres 247) and Leon Trotsky's house (Viena 45) is quiet and has some possibilities for street photography.
Tripods are not allowed inside INAH archaeological sites unless you apply for a permit (far in advance) and pay a $300 dollar daily fee.
The Metro is a good way to get around, but don't carry any camera gear (cases, boxes, etc.) and watch your billfold (pouch around neck under your shirt is best.) Some stations are known territory of very professional pickpockets. Hidalgo Station near the Palace of Fine Arts is one such. Avoid it. The hombres have an amazing variety of tricks. I speak from experience.
All that as it may be, it's a great city, well worth visiting. Enjoy it.
Wayne

[Michael W]

I spent 5 weeks there about 3 years ago. No problems & had a great time. Basic security - try not to look like a wealthy gringo, don't hail street taxis & watch out for pickpockets on the metro. If you need a taxi go to the nearest decent hotel & get them to call you one or find one of the official taxi stands.

I can't recommend a trip to Teotihuacan enough, it's one of the most incredible places I've ever seen. I took the bus from del Norte bus station, takes a bit more than one hour. No tripods allowed inside the site as I discovered when I turned up with mine.

There was a photo gallery in centro very close to the Cathedral & Templo Mayor, would be worth checking out.

I'd also recommend the Dolores Olmedo museum on the outskirts of the city, has a lot of Rivera & Kahlo works as well as a small but high quality exhibition of pre-Hispanic artefacts . It's in the house of a deceased wealthy collector, beautiful grounds.

[Terry Hull]

I have never been wary of touring DF alone, as long as you are around other people, and stay in the Reforma, Zocolo, San Angel areas. Unfortunately the Alvarez Bravo efforts, as I recall tend to be centered in Oaxaca, but you might try the Mexican Photo club on calle Hamburgo in the now former tourist zone, now run down Zona Rosa. There is a great Mexican photographer, I think named Enrique Segarra (spelling incorrect?) Who was exhibiting in the Sullivan sunday art faire-near Reforma and Insurgentes. He is also a member of the Hamburgo club previously mentioned. Depending on what you like to shoot, hangin' out in the centro historico is time well spent, and there are a dozens of other places well worth seeing. An easy and safe bus trip to Cuernavaca, tepoztlan, taxco are all worth visiting, but for me the nicest outside the DF is the independence route-to include Guanajuato, the gringoized San Miguel de Allende. I would steer clear of Morelia, Patzcuaro (my favorite place in Mexico) and Uruapan. There are many, many places to see and photograph very close to the DF.

[Daniel Stone]

Its been many years since I was in Mexico City, but two restaurants I'll never forget are "The Flamingo Room" and "Sep's" (hope I got those right)...

I think its "VIPS"(Veeps), but I'm not 100% either.

sanborn's is another good restaurant, its a chain, and IIRC, has an owl as their "mascot" on their signs. There's one right off the zocolo if I remember right.

-Dan

[chuck461]

Thanks for all the suggestions. As I suspected, it seems that there is not too much photography to see. Happily, many photos to make. I haven't figured out how to travel my 5X7 so I am shooting 35mm. I think I would be very nervous under a dark cloth in any city anyway.

I am staying in the Polanco district, so many of your suggestions are within walking distance. My favorite mode of transportation.

The warnings about safety are not lost on me. Thanks.

Tuesday will be my first day off. I'm looking forward to getting out.

Thanks
Chuck

[Terry Hull]

I took a 4X5 2 years ago and felt comfortable.

[Scott Davis]

Chuck-

I don't know which 5x7 you have, but I took my Canham and five (yes, five!) lenses and about ten or twelve film holders to Argentina a couple years ago in a single bag that had backpacking straps on it as well, so you could carry it like a duffel or wear it on your back. All of that gear fit inside the bag, which still qualified as a carry-on. The tripod went in the suitcase, head removed. I don't know about Mexico City, it's been 20+ years since I was last in the DF, but I had no problems in Buenos Aires. Memory of the DF has it a much rougher city than Buenos Aires, and I wouldn't feel very comfortable there with large format, but I'm sure a LOT has changed since I was last there. If you haven't been to see it yet, I cannot recommend enough the Anthropological Museum - it's one of the best museums of its kind in the world. Taxco was a beautiful colonial mining town when I was there, but it seems the drug cartel violence has reached it - recently they've been discovering stashes of executed bodies down old mine shafts, some going back a decade or more. If you want to see Taxco, go on an organized bus tour. There's safety in numbers that way.